Who or what is Inara? by Platonist

Conspiracy theory time:

Inara is involved in a smuggling operation.

She sought out a disreputable ship that she could manipulate into moving "cargo". Simon and River were a job, hence her fighting for them to not only be kept alive in the Pilot, but to also be delivered to the correct destination.

As for mal and Inara - nothing will happen (but may have pre series... hence Mal being able to barge in ion her so easily). Mal would be stupid to wait, Inara believes in her lifestyle. however she also suffers from jealousy when there is "competition" around (as in the forms of Saffron and Nandi).

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Monday, September 22, 2008 11:15 AM

STAPLES

What did they say? I haven't seen or heard anything about it, but "the Inara debate" is the most interesting (not to mention one of the only) secrets yet to be divulged. I don't ruttin' care if Joss tells a story about it or not (though I would love it if he did) - I just wanna know the answer!

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Monday, September 22, 2008 11:20 AM

ZEEK

Quote:
Originally posted by Stoweaway:
The last comic series got very close to revealing Inara's fate & thus her reason for leaving Sihnon.
Then Jewel & Morena let the secret fly during a Q&A at Dragon*Con. Hopefully even with the proverbial cat out of the bag, Joss will still choose to reveal Inara's secret in his own brilliant way.

Do tell. What did they claim Inara's story is? I'm more of the impression these panels are just joking around when they let these things slip, but I still like to hear what they throw out there.

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Monday, September 22, 2008 12:13 PM

2BY2GINGERBLUE

I believe Anara was planted by the Alliance on Serenity because the Alliance knew what type of ship she is. A ship that will be out of range most of the time and in Reaver territory, hence the syringe. I think Anara's syringe carries a infection to kill the Reavers, not sexually just at the expense of her life. I think that is why she gets more tense than anyone else on the boat when they are near. Also in Serenity ep. when she is with the young client he says " why would anyone want to leave" she has that look away silent moment. I think she was taken away by the Alliance because she was so good at what she does and happened to fall in love with the crew and ship.

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Monday, September 22, 2008 12:15 PM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

There are two things I have thought concerning Inara for a long time.

First, in "Out of Gas" she told Simon that she loved Serenity, and had since the first time she saw it. I have a feeling that first time was before she came aboard to negotiate a price with Mal. Perhaps she knew the previous owner.

Also, notice how most of her clients (with the possible exception of Atherton) were younger men whose family's were in influential positions on their planets, along with the lady counselor in "War Stories." Maybe she was making contacts with people who would be in positions of power in a few years' time. Even though she claimed to have supported Unification (which was probably the Guild's official position) she may actually have been working behind the scenes forming an anti-Alliance group. She wouldn't have trusted Mal with that information although she knew he would support it.

wo men ren ran zai fei xing.

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Monday, September 22, 2008 2:52 PM

Wow, some of you have very active imaginations, but I dunno... after fourteen episodes, a feature length film, a series of comic books and it being 6 years later, don't you think that Joss would have started to develop a conspiracy theory that she had had an active role in, especially if it had something to do with the Tams, the Alliance, or the Independents? There is nothing in canon to support any of these claims; as none of them ever sound right.

Joss himself says on the CE commentary that both Book and Inara have no real hidden agenda on Serenity.

Most of Inara's scenes are with Mal or about Mal, even when she is with her clients, Mal is the two ton elephant in the room. It's all about Mal...rescuing Mal, protecting Mal, being with Mal, who Mal is, it’s all about Serenity and its Captain.

As far as her fate with or without Mal, the inevitable will happen. I would look to the end of Better Days for those clues. Think about it, why would someone need a doctor? And Mal knows before Serenity, which I now find interesting.

By the way, Jayne really hates Reavers.

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Monday, September 22, 2008 6:08 PM

Quote:

Most of Inara's scenes are with Mal or about Mal, even when she is with her clients, Mal is the two ton elephant in the room. It's all about Mal...rescuing Mal, protecting Mal, being with Mal, who Mal is, it’s all about Serenity and its Captain.

By the way, Jayne really hates Reavers.

IMHO I agree that it is all about Mal. To resurect an old idea, all of the crew are different facets of Mal. Either what he is or what he was.

Inara is his mirror image in many ways. High maintenance where he's simple. Alliance supporter versus Independent. She's lost in the woods and he can see clearly there. He's had his Serenity Valley in the pilot while Inara doesn't have hers until the movie Serenity.

I was having an interesting conversation with 2 Browncoat friends Saturday at lunch and the conversation turned to Mal and Inara. There was general agreement among us that Mal and Inara would get together and it wouldn't last for a long time but it would give Mal the where with all to love again but some one simpler and more like himself.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Monday, September 22, 2008 6:25 PM

Well, in a Whedon verse it is more likely they will get together and she will die, because I think they'll both know that going in...and Inara would want Mal to be happy after her death.

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Monday, September 22, 2008 6:32 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Platonist:
Well, in a Whedon verse it is more likely they will get together and she will die, because I think they'll both know that going in...and Inara would want Mal be happy after her death.

I agree. I didn't want to mention Inara dying in case someone didn't put two and two together. True Whedon tragedy.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Monday, September 22, 2008 6:49 PM

Yes, actually I was thinking similar to Wash and Zoe.

And I think poor Inara faces her Serenity Valley everyday and that's a commonality... those looks and beats between those two are incredible.

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Tuesday, September 23, 2008 12:19 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Platonist:
Wow, some of you have very active imaginations, but I dunno... after fourteen episodes, a feature length film, a series of comic books and it being 6 years later, don't you think that Joss would have started to develop a conspiracy theory that she had had an active role in, especially if it had something to do with the Tams, the Alliance, or the Independents? There is nothing in canon to support any of these claims; as none of them ever sound right.

yeah, I kind of agree. I have never seen her as someone trying to bring down "The Alliance" (and when something is as big as what the alliance is purportedly to be, I doubt one man/small team can make a difference...)

Ultimately, the crew and those on board do not matter in the 'verse.

Saying that, there is a matter of coincidence. A master story teller introducing THREE groups of people in a surprising situation is rarely by chance. One could happen, Two would be keeping the options open. Three means conspiracy. Not all have to be involved, but in such a situation, IMO atleast one of the three groups (Inara, Book and the Tams being the three) must have chosen Serenity for a reason other than absolute chance.

Why would Simon stay on a ship where just hours earlier the captain had every intention of throwing him out of an airlock? Why would Inara defend the Tams to such an extent in the Pilot episode (after he bestest buddy evar, kaylee has been shot) that even leaving them on alive on another moon is not acceptable to her? What was Simon really doing in her shuttle in the pilot episode? What is the connection between Inara and Simon?

Those are the questions I am asking, and my conspiracy theory, while slightly outlandish, does answer them. (and it is not large scale. A Companion who is also smuggler getting a gig on a smuggling ship does not intent to destabilise the Alliance - probably just do her job (on her own, not on behalf of the sisterhood or whatever), earn her money.)

Quote:
Joss himself says on the CE commentary that both Book and Inara have no real hidden agenda on Serenity.

Ofcourse this hear throws a wrench into the works. I really need to get a hold of the DVD (I don't have an NTSC DVD player...).

Quote:
Most of Inara's scenes are with Mal or about Mal, even when she is with her clients, Mal is the two ton elephant in the room. It's all about Mal...rescuing Mal, protecting Mal, being with Mal, who Mal is, it’s all about Serenity and its Captain.

Not always - Higgins Moon before her rescue.

Quote:
As far as her fate with or without Mal, the inevitable will happen. I would look to the end of Better Days for those clues. Think about it, why would someone need a doctor? And Mal knows before Serenity, which I now find interesting.

Yup. NEED MORE STORIES. :P

Quote:
By the way, Jayne really hates Reavers.

You figure?

/we need a Reaver smiley. it would have been perfect with the blast one right here.

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Tuesday, September 23, 2008 12:46 PM

MAL4PREZ

Quote:
Originally posted by nbz:
Saying that, there is a matter of coincidence. A master story teller introducing THREE groups of people in a surprising situation is rarely by chance. One could happen, Two would be keeping the options open. Three means conspiracy. Not all have to be involved, but in such a situation, IMO atleast one of the three groups (Inara, Book and the Tams being the three) must have chosen Serenity for a reason other than absolute chance.

Well... the "coincidence" here may be nothing more than Joss's desire to have a large cast of interesting and unique characters. I believe it's in the Visual Companion that he says he originally planned for a crew of 5, but learned the lesson from Angel that more main characters is better for storytelling. So he upped it to 9. You got to get 9 different people to show up in one place somehow, right? Or you got no show. Doesn't mean they're there for the same reasons.

And, really, doesn't it allow for more stories (say, a full 7 seasons *bitterbitterbitter*), if these people all have their own tales, instead of it being all one deal? (Not that I didn't combine things in my own theories LOL!)

As to the other questions:

Why would Simon stay on a ship where just hours earlier the captain had every intention of throwing him out of an airlock? Good question, but the answer could easily lie somewhere between: because otherwise Joss doesn't get to tell River's story, and: because Simon had no where else to go. Boy was flat broke, and not so adept at surviving in the wilds.

Why would Inara defend the Tams to such an extent in the Pilot episode (after he bestest buddy evar, kaylee has been shot) that even leaving them on alive on another moon is not acceptable to her? Because Inara's basically an empathetic, all-heart kind of person who isn't afraid of Mal. As for Kaylee getting shot, I don't think Inara blamed Simon, and she isn't the vengeful type anyway.

What was Simon really doing in her shuttle in the pilot episode? He was getting med packs from her because the infirmary was so poorly provisioned. He said so. Right? (I admit - it's been awhile since I watched it.)

What is the connection between Inara and Simon? Later in the series? Post series? The strong hints are that she's sick and wants to be secretive about it, so who else would she go to?

Even after saying all that, I must add that I'm all kinds of eager to hear your conspiracy theory, nbz. Joss only gets to tell one story, we can make up several LOL!

Quote:
Yup. NEED MORE STORIES. :P

Good lord do we ever!

-----------------------------------------------
hmm-burble-blah, blah-blah-blah, take a left

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Tuesday, September 23, 2008 2:27 PM

KATESFRIEND

So what we need are the fragments put into fic. Boy meets girl, girl loves boy but leaves due to secret, boy gets girl back, girl puts boy emotionally back together, boy loves girl, girl gets sick and .... Sounds like enough material for 7 seasons to me. And all the hints are there as stated in the commentaries for Out of Gas and the pilot. And I can so see the actors playing out these roles perfectly. I love watching characters evolve as new situations confront them - kinda like real life! That's why post Serenity fic that's a rehash of who the characters were in Firefly seems like a contraction of what those characters became after Serenity. Way too much fertile ground here for authors!

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Tuesday, September 23, 2008 3:58 PM

Yes, yes, yes, absolutely, Katesfriend, sounds like seven seasons worth to me.

And my favorite ending would be; boy heals girl with the help of some special friends and she gets better because I’m a hopeless romantic who believes in the power of love.

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 12:03 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by mal4prez:
Well... the "coincidence" here may be nothing more than Joss's desire to have a large cast of interesting and unique characters. I believe it's in the Visual Companion that he says he originally planned for a crew of 5, but learned the lesson from Angel that more main characters is better for storytelling. So he upped it to 9. You got to get 9 different people to show up in one place somehow, right? Or you got no show. Doesn't mean they're there for the same reasons.

heh, I would put that down as one of the reasons why Firefly (and Drive) was cancelled! Too many people introduced too soon.

Not everyone can keep track and especially for a pilot, not everyone watching will be paying their full attention to the same level as applied in a cinema.

Quote:

Why would Simon stay on a ship where just hours earlier the captain had every intention of throwing him out of an airlock? Good question, but the answer could easily lie somewhere between: because otherwise Joss doesn't get to tell River's story, and: because Simon had no where else to go. Boy was flat broke, and not so adept at surviving in the wilds.

I don't believe he was broke... he had a destination in the Pilot and also some sort of a plan in the BDM of where to go. The conversation with Book in The Train Job suggested that Mal WAS collecting payment for keeping them onboard.

Add to that his outburst in Safe: "Please. If it's ransom you want, I... I can arrange something."

He may not have been filthy rich, or had loads of loos change, but he had something.

Quote:
What was Simon really doing in her shuttle in the pilot episode? He was getting med packs from her because the infirmary was so poorly provisioned. He said so. Right? (I admit - it's been awhile since I watched it.)

Yes, that is what we were told. As in we walked into the end of a conversation. Could have been other stuff too.

Quote:
What is the connection between Inara and Simon? Later in the series? Post series? The strong hints are that she's sick and wants to be secretive about it, so who else would she go to?

True dat. She could be sick and loads of other people have entertained such notions too. however it seems a little cliched. (as an aside, I always thought the final Book/Inara conversation from the pilot alluded that Book was ill. It was later when others pointed out to me this was more about mental wellbeing about being on a smuggling ship!)

Quote:
Even after saying all that, I must add that I'm all kinds of eager to hear your conspiracy theory, nbz.

It is all small scale. I don't believe in big stories in Firefly. It is about the little person, surviving another day etc etc. If the show has run on, that may have changed, but I am not really interested atm in overarching revolutions etc.

The big stuff has already happened in the war, and IMO there would not be another (of such scale - there may be some crumbling of the crust as the alliance struggles with over exerting itself, but no revolutions, massive independence movements or other such things....) in the Firefly timescale.

Quote:
Joss only gets to tell one story, we can make up several LOL!

you have a point. There is a chance I may get my creative juices going. Over the past year I have not been very creative, but recently, I have regained my interest in wordplay. Hopefully this will fall over into storytelling.

I have some ideas and hopefully they will get written and appreciated (hopefully confuse people too)

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 12:42 PM

ZEEK

Jewel & Morena Dragon*Con spoilery info below. Read at your own risk! Or scroll past it real fast. Your choice. :-P

Quote:
Originally posted by nbz:
Quote:
What is the connection between Inara and Simon? Later in the series? Post series? The strong hints are that she's sick and wants to be secretive about it, so who else would she go to?

True dat. She could be sick and loads of other people have entertained such notions too. however it seems a little cliched.

That's what they said Jewel and Morena spilled. Inara was dying. That's why she left Serenity instead of let herself fall for Mal. Lame. We already guessed that! Where's that Joss magic of totally turning a corner we didn't see coming?

OK spoilers all gone. Enjoy your sheltered lives. Bet you're itching to know the big secret though. All the cool kids are reading spoilers.

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 12:49 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Katesfriend:
So what we need are the fragments put into fic. Boy meets girl, girl loves boy but leaves due to secret, boy gets girl back, girl puts boy emotionally back together, boy loves girl, girl gets sick and .... Sounds like enough material for 7 seasons to me. And all the hints are there as stated in the commentaries for Out of Gas and the pilot. And I can so see the actors playing out these roles perfectly. I love watching characters evolve as new situations confront them - kinda like real life! That's why post Serenity fic that's a rehash of who the characters were in Firefly seems like a contraction of what those characters became after Serenity. Way too much fertile ground here for authors!

Maybe this discussion will give me the motivation to finish the last half of a post BDM fic I've had on my hard drive for, oh 8 or 9 months.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 1:47 PM

CHARLIEBZ

Quote:
Originally posted by ncbrowncoat:

Maybe this discussion will give me the motivation to finish the last half of a post BDM fic I've had on my hard drive for, oh 8 or 9 months.

Consider this a request to let loose with the motivation. I'd love to read your post BDM fic.

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 2:17 PM

The sad thing...Joss hasn't refuted the disclosure. And, I don’t think its “lame” or “clichéd". It is good storytelling and really tragic.

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 2:33 PM

KATESFRIEND

The end scenario has me wondering which way Joss would have gone with Mal's character as the focus of the show. He is someone who lost everything, then gained the love of his life and meaning to his existence. What does a person do who then loses everything of meaning twice? Does he go bitter and die inside (tried that once), or does he find peace in having loved even though he lost her. Gives new meaning then to the Mal, Zoe friendship and the reason behind the loss of Wash to then see two old friends survive another heartache. Wouldn't you just die to know sometimes what was going on in Joss's 7 year storyboard for Firefly?

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 2:38 PM

PIRATENEWS

John Lee, conspiracy therapist at Hollywood award-winner History Channel-mocked SNL-spoofed PirateNew.org wooHOO!!!!!!

Inara's job is to recruit horny couch potatos to watch Firefly. Male and female. End of story.

"Dirty dirty whore!"
-Mal, Trash

Firefly Music Video: Tangerine dream - Confrontation, Thief soundtrack
www.megavideo.com/?v=JVT35GR8

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 2:43 PM

TRAVELER

Do you notice how attached everyone is to Serenity. In "Out of Gas" Mal takes one glance and has to have this ship. Zoe is more practical, but she sticks with Mal and that means being part of the ship. Kaylee signs on without knowing much about the crew at all. Then Kaylee sees Book looking the ship over and knows he is hooked. "I seen ya look'n at the ship," Kaylee proclaims. And here are Mal and Zoe looking down three guns and talk the one man, Jayne, into betraying the other two. This scene is also in "Out of Gas".
It all comes down to the ship. Why did Simon pick Serenity to sneak River off world with?

Serenity draws people to her. She selects people who are troubled and need to escape. Serenity has pulled Inara and all the others to her. Mal says you have to love your ship to River. I think River knew that from the start. She took the controls at the end of the movie because Serenity wanted her to take them.

And why rebuild Serenity? It would probably have been wiser to buy a new ship. But Serenity has to live. She finds people who will help her and in return she helps them.

So my answer is, no one chooses Serenity. Serenity chooses them.

http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=28764731
Traveler

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 4:44 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by traveler:
Do you notice how attached everyone is to Serenity. In "Out of Gas" Mal takes one glance and has to have this ship. Zoe is more practical, but she sticks with Mal and that means being part of the ship. Kaylee signs on without knowing much about the crew at all. Then Kaylee sees Book looking the ship over and knows he is hooked. "I seen ya look'n at the ship," Kaylee proclaims. And here are Mal and Zoe looking down three guns and talk the one man, Jayne, into betraying the other two. This scene is also in "Out of Gas".
It all comes down to the ship. Why did Simon pick Serenity to sneak River off world with?

Serenity draws people to her. She selects people who are troubled and need to escape. Serenity has pulled Inara and all the others to her. Mal says you have to love your ship to River. I think River knew that from the start. She took the controls at the end of the movie because Serenity wanted her to take them.

And why rebuild Serenity? It would probably have been wiser to buy a new ship. But Serenity has to live. She finds people who will help her and in return she helps them.

So my answer is, no one chooses Serenity. Serenity chooses them.

http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=28764731
Traveler

Very well put Traveler. I've got a lump in my throat.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 6:28 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Platonist:

The sad thing...Joss hasn't refuted the disclosure. And, I don’t think its “lame” or “clichéd”. It is good storytelling and really tragic.

Has he had a chance to?

As for whether it is good storytelling or not, it all comes down to execution.

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 8:46 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

I can take Joss's word for it that Inara has no secret motive regarding Serenity, but not to say she hasn't a secret motive for herself being on Serenity.

I don't have the answer. But I might add some light.

Some may note the discrepancy between the date official records show her departing Madrassa House and boarding Serenity, and the dates she states she actually has been aboard. This has been pointed out in the time line discussions. This may have bearing on why she left Madrassa House, why she chose Serenity, why the (reported or recorded) timing is inconsistent. Perhaps Serenity was chosen because the recordkeeping is somewhat more...fluid.

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008 8:54 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

Quote:
Originally posted by Katesfriend:
The end scenario has me wondering which way Joss would have gone with Mal's character as the focus of the show. He is someone who lost everything, then gained the love of his life and meaning to his existence. What does a person do who then loses everything of meaning twice? Does he go bitter and die inside (tried that once), or does he find peace in having loved even though he lost her. Gives new meaning then to the Mal, Zoe friendship and the reason behind the loss of Wash to then see two old friends survive another heartache. Wouldn't you just die to know sometimes what was going on in Joss's 7 year storyboard for Firefly?

I don't think Mal was the focal point. It might seem so merely because he is the Captain. However, Joss has stated that the show is viewed from River's point of view, it is her journey. The various progressions of interactions between
River and Mal are very important, but much time is spent in the show with River and whomever she is interacting with.

I think season one was pointing out the issues among the crew. Season 2 was the River-Miranda arc which became the BDM.
Inara and Book could have been explored more in the following seasons, if they survived that long. The Washburne baby would have been interesting, if certain fatalities were not used for artistic liscense in the BDH.

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Thursday, September 25, 2008 2:54 AM